


Ein Roter Himmel

by Dd_Ridge1995



Series: WW2 [4]
Category: Ein Roter Himmel, World War 2 - Fandom, ww2 - Fandom
Genre: Anxiety, Drug Use, Fluff, Hickeys, Kissing, Like Squad Interventions, Loneliness, Love Bites, Love Letters, M/M, Semi-Alternative History, Sleep Deprivation, Soldiers, Some Things Exist That Didn't Actually Exist, Starvation, They didn't exist, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, WW2, World War 2, idk - Freeform, maybe smut, underage mentions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-06-06
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:08:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23288305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dd_Ridge1995/pseuds/Dd_Ridge1995
Summary: Axel sends love letters to his significant other, Octave, who's in another part of Germany serving as a Sargent. The letters have Octave replaced with Martha as to throw off prying eyes.Eventually Axel and Octave meet again, then things take a turn.-Adding tags for future chapters is a risky game
Relationships: Axel Himmen & Finn Winter, Axel Himmen/Octave Mismire, Axel/Octave, Octave Mismire & Martin Hallen
Series: WW2 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1409221





	1. Letter

**Author's Note:**

> My only method of writing and posting to AO3 has broke, I have to use the commons computer, not fun.

The sound of the machine gun haunted Axel as he slept, the sound of men shouting and dying. It was all very surreal, as if he woke up then, they’d all be dead. Then there was peace, no more death, no more machine gun firing, no more shouting. Axel heard only the sound of leaves crunch as someone walked over them, he immediately recognized the walk pattern of who it was.

“What a beautiful red sky.”

Axel awoke silently in the back of a truck, surrounded by other soldiers who looked grim and sad. He adjusted his grip on his rifle so it rested against the wall of the truck bed. Some of the soldiers were murmuring to each other, others playing cards. The truck was wet with dew from the morning. Axel shook off the sleep fatigue and took out a pencil and paper and began to write to his loved one.

‘ _ My dearest Martha, _

_ I wish so badly we could be with one another, I wish so badly to see your smile, to hear your laugh. Your blonde hair and blue eyes . . . I miss them. It seems wherever you are, there is peace.  _

_ Recently I had a dream of a battle, I couldn’t see anything but darkness, but I could hear everything that went on around me. I heard the sounds of men dying and killing, but I shall spare you the details. The sounds of war seemed to have no peace to them, and then it all stopped. It stopped like the ticking of a watch. There was nothing except the sound of your voice. I hope to remember it from here on, until we meet again. _

_ -Axel’ _

Axel read through the letter, correcting any mistakes and bad grammar. He wondered what Octave would think of it, as he usually did when writing letters to his loved one. Axel sighed and folded the letter into three parts, so whenever he had the chance he could seal it then send it. The other soldiers had begun to notice his hasty writing and focused reading.

“Ah,” A soldier spoke, “writing love letters are we?” 

The soldier, Finn, had a mocking tone in his voice.

“Yeah, what’s it to you anyway? You’ve never been one to intrude upon other’s affairs.” Axel retorted.

Finn grinned devilishly, “Well when you focus on your letters so much, it’s hard not to notice.”

Axel gave Finn a nasty glare before placing the sacred letter in his chest pocket. He wanted it to be in the best possible condition when Octave received it. Finn’s smile faded as he slumped back down and went to sleep. Axel was relieved, the man could talk his life away if given the chance. 

Axel had met Finn when he was young, after his Mother had told him to leave the house due to his abusive Father. He roamed the streets looking in trash bins and on the streets for food. It got cold quickly, and Axel hadn’t a thing to protect himself from the cold. His shoes got too small for him so he ditched them in a park, coming back for them later only to nearly get eaten by a dog. The ends of his pants had withered away, leaving him barefoot. Axel slept behind a staircase most of the time, it led off from the sidewalk down onto a small concrete dock. One of those nights he had come across a young Finn taking a midnight stroll. Finn saw the condition that Axel was in and offered for him to come along with. He accepted and the two walked around the small town and got to know each other. Thus began something that would continue for a long time, Finn finding the other in an alley or backstreet and Axel walking around town with him. It soon started to snow and Finn invited Axel into his home, which he was hesitant about at first until caving and finally coming into his home, their bond did nothing but grow from then on.

Axel rested his head against the crappy wooden truck bed and watched the trees go by above him. He yearned for Octave, just to be with him and talk, but life wouldn’t have it that way. So Axel learned to cope without him, and his method of coping wasn’t exactly good for him. 

“Fuck, can’t eat, gotta wait.” Axel held his stomach and whispered to himself.

-

The truck stopped abruptly, Axel’s head thunked against the wood, waking him from a dreamless sleep. They had reached their destination, which was a military camp in central Belgium, a place to prepare for the march on France. There were a lot of soldiers, but no Octave. No, he was in Czechoslovakia, awaiting the word of a general or higher-up for the next move. The truck’s bed opened, and Axel wasted no time grabbing his rifle and getting out.

“Hey, Axel,” Finn said, catching up to Axel, “What do you think they’re going to make us do?”

Axel shrugged, “As long as they don’t tell us to do some impossible shit, I don’t really care.”

Finn smiled and patted him on the back, he saw the dark rings under Axel’s eyes, which had been a common sight to see recently. Not many soldiers got sleep, and if they did it was generally only for a few hours. Axel had it bad, Finn had noticed, he forced himself awake by staring at the sun or any other bright objects, Axel had been eating a lot less as well.

“Hey,” Finn whispered, “How’s Octave? How’s life?”

Axel looked to the ground and kicked pebble clusters around before answering, looking more gloomy than before.

“Octave’s good, which is . . . a godsend. Me though? Hah, my mind’s a mess. I need to stay awake, I need to spare my rations, I need to do this and that just to barely pass as good enough.” He groaned and took out his half filled water canteen.

Finn stared at Axel sadly, the man was practically torturing himself mentally, physically, and emotionally. He’d try and help Axel to the best of his ability, just until he could get him to Octave. Octave would help Axel figure things out, or so he hoped. He took a sip of water from his canteen, regretting it as the taste of metal filled his mouth.

“Good enough for who?” Finn daringly questioned.

Axel just laughed at himself, as he normally did when realizing his faults.

“Myself. I have standards for how I think I should act and do things and-,” He sighed, “and none of it helps.” He breathed, shaking his head.

Finn looked around them, soldiers were gathered everywhere, but no one seemed to have eyes on the two. He sat down against a tree and motioned for Axel to join him. They sat in the shade, taking the shine away from Axel’s black hair. 

The two were vastly different physically, Finn having blonde hair and green eyes whereas Axel had black hair and blue eyes. Axel was decently tall, he had a pale complexion to complement his slender figure. The near-starvation had caused him to become more thin than he had already been, you could count his ribs. Finn, however, seemed more human than Axel, being average height and having a peachy tone to his skin. He was muscular but wasn’t built as much as some of the other soldiers.

“This is confusing and I’m a mess.” Axel picked up a rock and tossed it gently.

Finn processed most of what he had just said, “What do you mean by ‘None of it helps’?”

Axel looked up towards the sky as clouds wafted over the sun, casting a dark shadow upon the world. He thought it was more peaceful this way, no bright light to distract him, just calm darkness.

“I-” He took a deep breath and calmed down, “I guess my loneliness? I miss Octave a lot.” He answered.

Before Finn could say anything else, all soldiers were called to formation to finally carry out the march on France.


	2. Thoughts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just some walking, not much

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long to write this, I had moments of writer's block

The soldiers lined up in six rows, each row being decently long. They had to listen to the captain go over the plan of attack and strategies that they’d be using such as going through the Ardennes. Axel’s mind wasn’t on the battlefield though, it was wandering through the field of thoughts that he had. Each thought ended when the captain would yell, and another began. He thought of what France would be like, as he had heard it was beautiful. Axel knew about all of the major tourist attractions, but that wasn’t what he wanted to see. He wanted to find a quiet place to relax and rest. Perhaps by the river, yeah, perhaps by the river with Octave. Axel knew that was just a mere fantasy, nevertheless he wished it could be the better of reality than what he knew it truly was. The captain shouted something and Axel felt a deep rumble beneath his feet.

_ “Tanks.” _ He heard someone whisper.

The soldier snapped out of his mind and studied his surroundings without moving his head. _Captain, pathway, soldiers,_ _and tanks_ Axel mentally noted. The tanks were mostly Panzer I’s, occasionally there would be a Panzer II scrambled into the mix. The men were instructed to begin their journey to France, and with that the soldiers dispersed, most trying to scraggle their way to a motorcycle to avoid walking. Axel enjoyed walking though, it reminded him of walking through the streets of Ludwigshafen, his hometown.

Ludwigshafen was a small factory town that he was born and raised in. The town was to the west of Mannheim, the two towns touched. Axel liked the town he lived in, it was generally quiet and no one really cared too much about what happened in it. As a result, Axel usually got away with whatever he did, vandalism, petty theft, and trespassing were all things he did nearly on a daily basis. The town became even more close to him when his Mother told him to leave to escape the life that Axel’s father had ruined for them. He slept on the streets that he had already grown familiar with, using his habits to get by until Finn took him in.

Axel looked down, the ground was dry, meaning dirt would soon kick up from the couple hundred men. The soldiers were instructed to head south towards Germany and then swoop back up towards France from the Ardennes. The company that Axel was in was particularly large, consisting of nearly two-hundred and forty soldiers. All of which were led by a single captain. Within all of the sounds Axel heard slow paced footsteps near his side.

“Hey,” Finn tapped him on the back, “How’s it going?”

Axel looked at him blatantly, “Didn’t you just ask me that like five minutes ago?”

Finn smiled and looked down at him, “Yes, but I know your mind’s always active.”

Axel looked away from him to the trees, it’s branches slowly shifting from the wind. He hummed a low note, as if he were thinking about something, which he was. Axel thought about Octave, how kind he could be but also how aggressive he got from time to time. He enjoyed seeing how angry a person could get without resorting to physical violence, it was a cruel game, and Axel watched from the sidelines. He couldn’t pinpoint why exactly he liked it, but he figured it was most likely due to the fact that watching someone get frustrated was interesting. Some people got more pissed than others, some people had a more calm approach to it. Octave was one person that Axel thought was intriguing when he got angry. He’d block out anything and focus on what pissed him off the most, whether that be a person or an object. What Octave would do next was entirely decided upon the people around him, whether they’d stop him or not.

Axel looked forwards, he and Finn both walked alongside a Panzer, a radio operator stuck out of the top hatch, he looked bored. His shoulders were slanted giving him something to rest his head on. Finn hummed two high notes, a reminder to Axel that he was still waiting for an answer. Axel snapped out his daze.

“Oh, uh, just thinking about the next time we get to send letters.” He lied with a smile.

Finn smirked and cuffed Axel in the back of the head, “Thinkin’ about your girl again! I knew it!” He exclaimed.

Axel chuckled, knowing what Finn had really meant. Oftentimes Axel thought that Finn had a sort of elegance to him, how he dressed and carried himself told Axel that he was raised in class, but he acted very mischievous. He had a look of guilt whenever his name was called, as if he had just been caught doing something wrong. This led Axel to believe that Finn was either the youngest child or the youngest middle child, used to getting away with things and afraid of getting caught.

Axel’s mind stirred before settling on a decent conversation topic.

“Finn?” Axel spoke.

Finn glanced down at him “Hmm?” 

“What do you think the largest amount of something is?” He asked.

The other shook his head whilst holding a smile, “Time, it’s infinite and has always existed, so therefore it’s the largest amount of something.”

Axel’s brow furrowed, “Not necessarily true, if you think of it as whenever the Earth was created then  _ something _ had to outweigh time, air for example.”

Finn’s expression was blank, “In what terms are we speaking of? Since the Earth existed or since ‘nothing’ existed?”

Axel thought for a second, “I guess . . . since ‘nothing’ existed.” 

“Well, if we’re not looking at it from the Christian point of view, then when ‘nothing’ was created, time began outweighing everything.” Finn shrugged.

Axel glared at the ground, “Yes, but at least blank space happens to be more of a thing than a philosophical element such as time.” 

Finn’s eyes widened in realization, “Huh, I guess that’s true.”

The two walked in silence, the sounds of tanks and other soldiers surrounded them. Gear shuffled and clanked, boots hit the dirt, tanks whirred and whined, some soldiers spoke to each other, some lit crappy cigarettes. It was relaxing in a way, it calmed Axel to know that everyone had personality, and they weren’t just mindless soldiers. Well,  _ no one _ was just a mindless soldier, especially not in this war. Morale played a key factor to it, and it was often boosted by personal luxuries or speeches. Cigarettes being a big thing, on both sides of war too. Axel wasn’t fond of cigarettes, they made his mouth dry and they tasted like shit, Finn didn’t smoke unless he was offered a drag. And Octave? He smoked, mostly to just calm himself or have something to occupy his mind. Although the cigarettes were utter garbage most soldiers just took what they could get. American cigarettes were highly prized and were often traded for other luxuries such as collectables, rations, and alcohol.

Finn rolled his shoulders back, Axel heard a quiet popping noise as the other cracked his back. He let out a strained whine and situated himself back to his original position, which was absent of any slouches.

“Jesus this is gonna be a long walk.” Finn sighed.

Axel nodded slightly in agreement.

“At least we have the beautiful Belgium, German, and French scenery to entertain us.” Axel laughed.

Finn cracked a smile, “Belgium, Germany,  _ and _ France? Well, I could get used to that my friend!” 

The two looked around them, oak trees stood tall and firm, their branches hanging like vines. The trees were more common in Germany, and Axel liked them, he didn't know what type of tree they were though. He listened closely, ignoring the sounds of the company. Birds chirped and flew, surprising as it was noon. The trees swayed, sounding like a giant shuddering, a warm breeze passed over them. It was a lovely day out, with only a few clouds in the sky and a shining sun. Axel tolerated it, he much preferred shade, not darkness, just shade. The trees began to form a canopy over them, making Finn stare up into them, their vine-like branches twirling down. You could almost touch them, it seemed, but it was just a mere illusion sought by fantasy.


	3. Drugged

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Octave takes sleeping pills, he gets a little delirious, his friend has to help him out.  
> The usual.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I began writing this on April 5th, let's see how long it takes for me to complete the chapter.

Octave looked at the ground, it was damp and cold, roots sprawled out from it like fingers. The makeshift stove’s fire illuminated his fellow soldiers in the dark. He was in north eastern Czechoslovakia, waiting for orders to come through from a general. Octave knew that Hitler had his eyes set for Poland, but he considered the fact that they were closer to Eastern Germany than Poland. He hoped that they’d get shipped to a more northern part of Germany to join the attack on France. Though he knew that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

Octave cracked his neck and sighed, taking out a small bottle of pills, Blue 88, sleep drugs. He’d taken them from a downed American plane, after his squad searched the bodies for food, medicine, or other such treats. They really needed most of what they got, especially Octave who had problems with anxiety and sleeping. It wasn’t so much sleeping as it was anxiety though, he wasn’t usually calm and the pills helped a lot. Well, they helped until he ran out of course, and it could take weeks or months to get another bottle. In this case it’d been five months since he last had an ‘88, and it’d been a lot more stressful as well. He uncorked the container and poured out three little blue pills out onto his hand and popped them into his mouth, opening his flask and taking a few gulps of water, swallowing the pills. Octave thought for a second before putting the lids on his stuff and storing them away. 

He sat next to Martin, who was one of Octave’s close friends and quite possibly one of the few people he trusted. Martin was average-ish height, which meant he was short to Octave, and he had muscle. His accent was of Latino origin, and it was very light. He was a blue-eyed, light haired brunette who saw things more logically than his fantasy-driven friend. They got along though, telling each other about their mood or things that bother them. Martin knew that Octave got stressed easily and took pills to quell his problems, it wasn’t to forget or to feel good about life for a while. It wasn’t drug abuse, it was sincerely Octave setting his problems aside while he looked for ways to cope with them. Martin also knew that he had an amplified reaction to drugs of any sort, which meant Octave might get a little hysterical. Though his reaction was always slurred babbling and consistently waking up and falling back asleep again.

“Martin?” Octave whispered, still looking at the ground.

“Yeah? Are ya doing okay?” He worried.

Octave smiled at his reply, he knew Martin didn’t like dealing with drugged or drunk-out-of-their-mind people, yet he still cared about him. They kept their voices down until the topic of conversation ended.

“I’m fine, nothing to worry about my friend,” His smile turned into a grin, “ I just wanted to ask you what you think of Axel.”

_ Simple question,  _ Martin thought,  _ easy answer. _

“Well, I’ve never met ‘em before, but from all the things you’ve told me,” Martin nudged Octave playfully, “I c’n tell that he’s a good guy.”

The blonde smiled at the nudge, he knew he didn’t really shut up when it came to Axel, after all, he was the love of his life.

Octave chuckled, “Well, he can be stubborn and harsh, and that doesn’t change even if you know him well.”

Martin’s brow raised and he nodded in agreement, he had heard Octave talk about Axel a lot, even when the two were just beginning their relationship. He looked over at Octave, he seemed a little confused and his actions were slowed, the drug’s effects had begun to kick in.

“Hey, Octave, how ‘re ya doin’ now?” Martin asked.

He looked around himself before answering, “Not t-too well, I think ‘m seeing things.”

The other soldiers began stretching, ready to deal with whatever delusional bullshit Octave was about to throw at them. Then the drugs really began to hit hard, he giggled to himself, throwing his head back and cackling.

“No, no, this is great!” He exclaimed happily.

A young and new recruit looked over at all of his fellow soldiers, and the Sergeant himself. His expression had showed that he was confused and slightly worried. Another soldier caught onto this and explained what was happening.

“It’s okay, the Sergeant does this every time he starts taking his pills after a while. If you’re lucky you’ll only get kicked in the knee, if you’re not so lucky, a kick in the face.” He whispered.

The recruit looked mortified. Octave laughed some more, holding his sides and kicking his feet around as if he were a child. Martin looked bored, he’d at least done this twenty times already, and each time he did he’d get some new cut, bruise, or gash from Octave’s drugged stupor. He went up behind the Sergeant, sat down, and held him, as to make sure he didn’t hurt himself in his ecstatic state. However, it was up to everyone else to contain him.  _ Why _ they tried to contain him was but a mystery to Martin, perhaps it offered a tame challenge to the bored, perhaps it was because they actually cared about him, or maybe it was because they wanted him to calm down and shut up so they could finally go to sleep. Whatever the case, it seemed that nearly everyone joined in on making sure he didn’t wander off into the soldier-filled woods or fall onto the makeshift stove.

“N-no let go!” Octave laughed, he protested Martin’s attempt restraints, but he held through.

This wasn’t like the other times he’d gotten back on his medication, usually he thrashed around and became violent, now he just seemed like a teenage girl, giggling and squirming in Martin’s arms.

“Well I guess it isn’t that bad. Martin you got him for the rest of the night? Yeah? Great.” A soldier quipped.

“Uhm, actually-” Martin was cut off.

The squad began settling back into their sleeping spots.

“All you have to do is hold him, right?” The recruit asked, “Should be easy.”

Martin gritted his teeth at their lack of help, but kept Octave close anyway. He shuffled to the edge of the pit-like trench and leaned against it, Octave sat between his legs, resting his head on Martin’s stomach. Octave had stopped squirming and laughing and began to drift off to sleep, his friend was not very useful as a pillow but he digressed. All of the soldiers quickly fell asleep under the stars and trees, no wind blowing and howling, just the faint sound of Polish soldiers moving ammunition and supplies around. Not much happened at night other than the Polish doing their own thing and jerking around in the trees. 

_ Damn they never sleep _ , Martin thought.

He loosened his grip on Octave, he didn’t want this to be a really intimate scene, and it wasn’t. Just a friend helping his buddy calm down from a drug high, and even to that it really wasn’t a drug high. At least Martin didn’t think it was. Octave moved his head, trying to get a little more comfort from the other’s stomach, which didn’t work and he ended up shifting back to his original position. Probably not the best feeling Martin’s had, but this very well could be much worse, for example, he could be bleeding out from a gunshot wound to the chest. But, despite the nearly constant shifting of Octave, the two finally began falling asleep. Well, Martin finally began falling asleep, Octave succumbed to his weariness and clocked out. All was well, except for the Polish tap dancing in the trees and startling every living creature in them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit! Two days to write this, that oughtta be a new record!


	4. Awake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Octave wakes up to receive a letter from Axel, arguing between the sergeant and a soldier ensue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter might seem long and rushed, I'm sorry, I just needed to get it out before i went mad.  
> EDIT: I'm going on a slight hiatus again, dont worry, it's just lack of motivation <3.

Octave nearly slept for an entire day, shifting every hour or so. Martin knew to leave him alone, waking him would make him confused and dazed. If anything were to happen he’d have to wake the sergeant up, but the possibility of Czech soldiers planning an attack was unlikely. The squad was in a generally safe position in north-eastern Czechoslovakia, a forest that had made good protection. They hadn’t fought back though, the Czech, and the other German squads had already taken over Bohemia. Not much had happened that day, the wind blew, the polish retreated back to their homeland, the mail deliverer came through and gave the soldiers their mail.

“One for . . . Octave! What a surprise!” He said bleakly.

The mail deliverer looked around only to find a sleeping sergeant, he hesitated before saying his name again.

“Octave? Sergeant Mismire.” He sang.

Martin sighed and stuck out his arm, gesturing for the letter. The deliverer, Dahckt, looked at his hand with worry, as the letters were personal, he nervously handed it to him. Martin took it and put it inside his coat pocket as Dahckt handed out mail to the other soldiers, he soon left and the squad was quiet once again. Octave shuffled around, kicking his feet in the dirt and mumbling to himself.

“. . .ey, no! Axe . . . Axel!” He whispered.

Martin glanced at him, his expression showed he was frustrated, Martin nudged him.  
“Hey Octave, get up.” He whispered to his friend.

The sergeant’s eyes fluttered open, he shifted to face the private next to him. Octave stretched his arms above his head before he spoke, “Yeah? ‘M awake now.”

Martin looked at him with guilt, “Sorry for waking you, uhm, you didn’t look like you were having a good dream.”

The sergeant rubbed his eyes and smiled at Martin, “It’s fine.”

Octave sat up, his back cracked as he did so, he still had his smile on his face. He pulled his knees up to his chest and rested his head sideways on one of them. The sergeant studied the faces of his fellow soldiers carefully, they seemed bored and tired, once again still waiting for orders to come through. 

Martin remembered the letter, “Oh, Octave I have something of yours.” 

He took out the letter from his chest pocket and handed it to him, Octave took it, and opened it lazily. It was folded and crinkly, he read it silently.

 _Dearest Octave,_ _  
_ _The soldiers have orders to invade France, and I do believe that’s what's happening. It might be awhile before I write again, as couriers are busy getting orders through and I won’t be in town for the next few weeks, or months depending on the situation. I’ll be careful, I know that the war has had an impact on those who travel to dangerous parts. I’m doing well, along with Finn, he’s keeping me company as you’re gone. But he’s not a replacement, he calms me down and I have reason to believe that he wishes you were here. I miss you, and I hope that you’re safe where you are._

_Your love,_

_Martha._

_  
_ The sergeant smiled, happy to know that his love was okay. He reread the letter, there were plenty of erase marks, where Axel had fixed his writing and Martha had gone over it. Martha was a mutual friend between Octave and Axel, and was Finn’s sister. Their entire letter system worked in a way that wouldn’t get any of them caught. Axel wrote a letter to Martha, but not for her, she received it and edited it so that it seemed like she wrote it and intended on sending it to Octave, then sent it to the sergeant, and vice versa. It was a simple process and it took little planning to figure out how it’d work. Although Octave missed seeing Axel’s signature, but, it was a sacrifice he was willing to make for their love. 

“Joyful, are we?” Martin chuckled as he fiddled with the lapel of his coat.

Octave gave him a playful glare, “Oh please Martin, it’s a letter from Axel, nothing more.”

The private’s brow raised and he looked away from Octave, he smiled though.

Martin scoffed, “Sergeant, I know that for you, a letter from him means the world . . . and I bet a letter from you would make his day, now wouldn’t it?” He laughed.

Their whispering and laughing became more apparent to the other soldiers. They began listening closely to the two, eavesdropping if you will, but their efforts were thwarted by the wind and the constant singing of birds. Octave sighed, he remembered that he could write letters to Axel as well.

 _Oh well,_ He thought, _Axel will surely understand my lack of, uhm, continuity of letter production, won’t he?_  
The sergeant often thought in a sarcastic posh-like manner, mainly to entertain himself when things got boring.

“Shit, you’re right, I haven-” Octave was interrupted

Martin smiled, “It’s fine, he’s going to France, it’ll take him a while to receive letters . . . and besides, you don’t have any paper.”

In a fit of desire and anger mixed, something Octave called _wutliebe_ , he growled. His brow furrowed, he didn’t want to disappoint Axel.

“Well,” He began, “I’ll just rip off bark from a tree and write on it.”

A soldier spoke up, obviously angered with the lack of openness about the sergeant’s chatting.

“The hell are you two saying?” He yelled to the two.

The other members of the squad seemed surprised, sure they may have wanted to hear what Martin and Octave were talking about, but they weren’t going to say or ask about it, especially not in a profane manner.

“What did you say to me, private?” The sergeant retorted.

The private, Lukas Helsen, repeated himself, “I said, what the hell are you two saying?”

Octave huffed, annoyed mostly. A breeze blew by, causing him to shiver. He, along with everyone else was leaning against the edge of the pit-like trench. It was circular, like a pie pan had indented the ground, except the sides stood upright, instead of slanted. The sergeant raised his eyebrows, his voice had a warning tone to it.

“Listen here private, it’s none of your business, so back off.” He told him, his voice loud enough to reach Lukas, but not yelling.

Lukas, dissatisfied with his answer, curled up into a ball and mumbled something. Octave, ignored him, situation over, crisis averted, he began looking for paper somewhere on his person. Checking his inner coat pocket, he felt a large shred of paper, it had been ripped in half, but it’d do. He began to write to Axel.

 _Dearest Martha,_ _  
_ _I’m sorry I’ve not written, you must be worried. Well, I’m not dead, if you’re wondering, in fact I’m doing quite well here in Bohemia. It’s warmer here, a bit more south than Ludwigshafen, for sure. The wind blows a lot, however, it’s harder to hear the enemy. Well, that is, if there were an enemy, the Czechs didn’t fight back, and all we had to do was overtake what the Polish had taken before. Off the topic of war, I’m doing well. I miss you though, and I know I’m bad at portraying emotions into words but, well, shoot. I wish to be back in Ludwigshafen or Mannheim with you. I never will know why you care so much about that town, it’s just a bunch of factories and a few neighborhoods. But nonetheless, I’d love to go back with you, I love seeing you happy._ _  
_ _Your love,_ _  
_ _Octave Mismire._

 _  
_ The sergeant looked at it, and folded it, and stuck a piece of tape on the open flap, writing Martha’s address on it as well. Another soldier looked at him with the same glare Lukas had.

“I think Lukas is right, we ought to know what you two’ve been saying, after all we are a team right? And teams trust each other with everything.” He spoke, there was light sarcasm in the way we said his words.

Octave looked up, obviously annoyed by their persistence.

“This country isn’t based on what others think, only what our leader says and believes, and besides, it’s personal.” He informed the soldier, looking out at the trees.

Lukas looked up from his drawing in the dirt, it was of a flower.

“Well then, if it’s so personal to the point where you won’t tell _us,_ ” He paused, “then why tell Martin, eh? Why’s he so special?”

The private smirked. The sergeant narrowed his eyes into a glare, he leaned towards Lukas, towards the left side of the fire, he opened his mouth to snap back at the soldier. Martin cut him off.

“He doesn’t have to explain himself, especially not to _you._ ” He told Lukas calmly.

The private’s smirk was wiped off his face quickly, he thought for a second before it came back, “Well look at you now, you certainly aren’t Mr. Talkative, what’s caught your attention?”

Octave, opening his mouth only to get cut off again by Martin, accepted his defeat and began quietly judging the words of Lukas, his glare sharpening.

“Octave, calm yourself, take a walk.” Martin whispered over Octave’s shoulder.

The sergeant growled before standing up and pointing at Lukas, and with an angered tone told him to follow along. The private did as he was told, his devilish smile fading and his expression forming into a more stern one. Narrowed eyes and a tense jaw. The two walked left, which would be the back of the pit, hopping up the wall and shimmying down the generally steep hill. At the middle of the hill was a pathway, making the pit a perfect place to snipe enemy soldiers, as it was well hidden. You couldn’t see the small camp from the path without having foreknowledge of its existence, fortunately, there were no enemy soldiers in Czechoslovakia. Fortunately for both sides of the war, death was something that no one wanted, but killing had to be done. The two soldiers landed on the path with ease, Octave began walking right, Lukas followed closely behind. The sergeant folded his arms behind his back and walked with a straight back, Lukas did the opposite. They walked for what seemed like an hour, just far enough out of the earshot of the squad as the wind had finally ceased it’s merciless fight. Octave began to talk to Lukas.

The sergeant spoke sincerely to him, “What Martin and I were talking about, it was personal, I hope you realized that. I told him because he’s practically family, he’s all I have other than my brother, Klings.”

Lukas nodded, he had trotted up to his side, then looked away.

“But,” Octave carried on, “I know you’re going to be persistent and wonder what we were talking about, that’s fine, curiosity is human nature. You can’t help it and neither can I.” 

Lukas flinched at that last remark, he hated it when people called him out for being helpless, especially if it was about emotions. Octave ignored it and continued to speak.

“We were talking about my significant other, who’s currently in place where they might get killed,” The sergeant looked at Lukas, who seemed to be thinking, “so there, you wanted to know.”

The private’s eyes lit up devilishly, he continued to look at the ground and walk.

Lukas whispered to both of them “Well then, if she’s so special to you,” his pitch became a little louder and harsher, “then how’s about I stick my dick between her tits while you’re cooking in the kitchen!”

He seemed angry, Octave could only laugh, it was quiet and tears fell from his face, he wiped them away.

“Oh my, that’s- hah, that’s one of the best things I’ve heard all week, my friend,” The sergeant continued to wipe away tears from his face, “but unfortunately for you that can’t happen.”

Octave’s laughs turned into chuckles as Lukas’ eyes widened in surprise, he wasn’t on the ground getting beat or bleeding out. He cleared his mind before taking in what the sergeant had said to him. He gritted his teeth, his main goal was to piss off the sergeant, not make him laugh.

“Oh yeah?” Lukas tried to sound tough, “and why’s that, _sergeant?_ ”  
He mocked Octave’s title, but Octave didn’t care for that.

“Well now, that’s certainly an interesting topic, unfortunately I don’t trust you enough to tell you so,” The sergeant gave him two pats on the head, “you’ll just have to ponder about that.”

Octave had his signature smile set on his face, it was soft and kind, but it could also be sarcastic as well. The two continued to walk down the path, it became more flat and less steep, but the forest was still dense as ever. Lukas took this time to think, and eventually he came to two conclusions. Either the sergeant’s girlfriend was flat-chested or she wasn’t a girl at all. He quickly turned his head towards Octave, who was looking up and enjoying the scenery. Short pine trees jutted out from the hill side, curving upwards. The private snapped, getting the attention of the sergeant.

“Is she flat?” Lukas asked dumbly, patting his chest for context.

Octave smiled and shook his head, “No.”

Lukas folded his arms and asked again, “Okay then, is it a guy you’re in love with?”

Octave’s smile dropped and he looked away back towards the pine trees, he mumbled something under his breath. Lukas mockingly cupped his hand around his ear.

“Oh . . . What was that sergeant? I didn’t quite catch it.” His voice was honeyed, sweet but sharp. 

Octave shook his head and spoke up. 

“Perhaps, perhaps not.” He told him.

Lukas’ evil grin was back, making his personality change from a dumb toad to a jerk of a snake.

“So,” He began, jokingly, “that’s a yes? Is it, you fairy? Hmm?”

Octave ignored him, though his brow furrowed and his jaw tensed as he studied the mountain of a hill next to them. Lukas knew that the sergeant had heard him, so he continued his bullying.

“Little fucking fairy, eh? Is he nice to you? Actually, I know he is. After all, you can only pity those who are lesser than you. Isn’t that right, little fairy?” Lukas exaggerated the last word, drawing it out for Octave.

That’s all it took for Octave to snap, he whipped around fast enough to send the private into a state of temporary paralysis and shock. He thrusted his arm out and grabbed the collar of Lukas’ coat and tugged it towards himself. Octave leaned in, hovering over the private’s ear. 

He whispered, but it certainly wasn’t softly, “Listen here you measly little motherfucker, I could’ve killed you, but I decided not to. ‘Why?’, you ask, well that’s because perhaps something will kick you in the head and maybe, just maybe, you’ll have a change of heart. Don’t call me a fucking fairy, don’t talk about Axel like that, and don’t tell _anyone_ unless you want me to kick your pebble-sized head a little too hard.”

Octave let go of him, shoving him as he did so, his expression showed pure anger, Lukas’ showed fear. His breathing was heavy, his chest rose and fell quickly, the private looked at him for a second before defending himself.

“Listen, the only thing I wanted to do was piss you off, I don’t care whether you like men or not, that’s between you and whoever decides to fuck you,” Octave balled his fists, “and I won’t tell anybody, I’d be surprised if anyone even talked to me after this. The point is, is that I don’t care, I have no reason to hate you, but I do anyway, why’s that? Hell if I knew, but pissing people off seems to be what I’m good at, everything else . . . is just common sense.” Lukas glared at him before walking behind him, they had begun to walk back.

Octave relaxed his hands, letting them fall to his side. He thought about what to talk about, or more or less, what to ask Lukas. His mind settled on a simple question.

“Where are you from, soldier?” Octave’s voice was monotonous.

The sergeant had stopped in his tracks, causing the private to bump into him. It was gentle though as it was only the top of Lukas’ helmet that touched Octave’s back. 

The two didn’t move though, and Lukas answered the question, “Bremerhaven, my mom was from America and my dad was from Bremen.”

Octave thought for a second, “Ah, isn’t that a small bay town?” he asked.

Lukas nodded yes, Octave felt it on his back, and the two continued their way back to the squad, back to the pit, back to waiting for orders.


End file.
